Don't doubt the massive power that McDonald's holds over kids
When you think about the most famous brands in the entire world that are almost universally recognized by virtually everyone who sees them, one particular brand rises to the very top--MCDONALD'S! There's no denying the saturation of the Golden Arches in the marketplace today, but there's scientific evidence now that shows this influence goes much deeper than mere recognition especially among children.
In Episode 119 of "The Livin' La Vida Low-Carb Show with Jimmy Moore", I highlight a study published in August 2007 that found children preferred food that was wrapped in paper with the McDonald's logo on it compared to the exact same food appearing in plain paper wrapping. It's an absolutely astonishing discovery and further solidifies the argument that many are making that McDonald's has a responsibility to encourage healthier food options for its young customer base.
Click on the "LISTEN NOW" link below or download it to your iPod to hear Episode 119:
"The Livin' La Vida Low-Carb Show with Jimmy Moore" Episode 119 [13:29m]: LISTEN NOW | Download
McDonald's is a modern-day cultural phenomenon. No other business can claim such a strong foothold on the children of this world (except for maybe Disney, but that's debatable!). And with that great power there should be a responsibility to do something effective with it while still maintaining a profitable business model. The two are not mutually exclusive and offering healthy alternatives at the most famous fast food restaurant in the world is not an unreasonable request. And don't tell me they already do offer "healthy" choices because sugary salads and HFCS-infested caramel apple dippers don't count!
What do you make of this study revealing the marketing prowess of a company like McDonald's? Do you think they should use their popularity among the kids to begin educating and offering better food choices? Or it is perfectly fine for them to continue peddling burgers, French fries and milkshakes to serve the needs of their "growing" customer base? Talk about it in the show notes section of Episode 119 and let us know what YOU think!
Is there someone within the realm of diet, health and nutrition that you'd like to see me interview for "The Livin' La Vida Low-Carb Show with Jimmy Moore?" I'm always open to suggestions for future interviewees, so don't hesitate to let me know if I've overlooked someone important you'd like to hear more about. Please e-mail me with your recommendation at livinlowcarbman@charter.net and I'll do my best to set it up. THANKS for listening to the Internet's #1 low-carb podcast show!
A diet and health-centered "Kids Say The Darndest Things"
One of my favorite television shows of all time was the classic Ark Linkletter program called "Kids Say The Darndest Things." Bill Cosby took over hosting duties in recent years for this popular show asking kids to provide their own unique answers to some questions with obvious answers. And yet those answers were always so creative as fans of the show would quickly attest to. It's what made watching the show so much fun!
In Episode 26 of "Livin' La Vida Low-Carb On YouTube," I embark on my own version of "Kids Say The Darndest Things" by asking some children to tell me what think about diet, healthy eating, and unhealthy eating. Their answers may just surprise you and are likely atypical of what most kids of today's generation would have to say about this subject. But I'm encouraged that there is some hope for our future with answers like the ones provided in today's video.
Hear what these kids had to say in today's video:
Again, I used our new FLIP camera to do the videotaping of the segments with the kids outside of the studio and it worked fabulously. The only problem was the audio when you don't speak up. That's why I turned the background music OFF during the interviews with the kids so you could hear what they were saying. I've got a big mouth (no comments from the peanut gallery), so you can usually hear my voice over the bed of music. The kids did an AWESOME job and I was so proud of them.
Go back through our archives of YouTube videos and catch up with any you may have missed. We changed the way the videos are listed at YouTube by including the subject matter in the title now so it's easier to find past episodes by topic. THANKS for the suggestions everyone. Keep them coming by sending an e-mail to us anytime at livinlowcarbman@charter.net and be sure to subscribe to our videos so you'll always get the latest videos as soon as they are uploaded. We welcome comments about how to improve our videos and gladly take proposals for future topics to talk about. THANK YOU for supporting our "Livin' La Vida Low-Carb On YouTube" video series.
What choice do couples have when natural child birth is impossible?
While my life is pretty much an open book in the more than 2,000 columns I have written here, today I'm gonna share with you something very personal about an issue I have been dealing with in my life that I've never talked about before. It doesn't really have anything to do with livin' la vida low-carb, but I think is an important discussion to have on a web site like this one. Since I value the opinions of my readers, I welcome any comments and feedback you may have based on your own experiences and expertise.
My beautiful wife Christine and I got married in August 1995 with high hopes that we could be together forever, start a family, and watch our children go through this thing called life. When we got married in our early 20's, we never thought about the idea of this dream not coming true.
But here it is 12 years later and that's exactly where we are.
We've been trying desperately to have kids since our honeymoon night and were trusting that the Lord would provide this wondrous blessing in His timing. After buying enough home pregnancy tests over the years to fund a small country, we've been disappointed over and over again many times. The closest we ever got to having a baby was when we accidentally found out Christine was early on in her first trimester when she had a miscarriage shortly after we were married. We were devastated at the time, but knew we had some time.
Or so we thought.
Unless you have been through the unique heartache and pain of being childless when you so desperately want a baby, then it may be difficult for you to understand the toll this can take on you emotionally and even spiritually. Doesn't God know we want a little one to drive us up the wall? Why has He withheld this blessing from us when we want it so badly?
I'm grounded enough in my faith to realize we are prepared to face life's challenges for a reason although we don't always understand why at the time. Perhaps we will be able to help others who go through what we have in the future, so we know this has not been in vain. But it sure would be nice to put a happy ending to the story.
Earlier this year, we were reading books like How To Get Pregnant when Christine and I finally got the bright idea to have ourselves checked out by a reproductive endocrinologist to see if he could illuminate WHY we haven't been able to have kids. And the answer was shocking--it was BOTH of us. Christine had a bad case of endometriosis which caused her lots of pain "down there" and she's been that way since we got married.
She had surgery in August to remove the endometriosis so she could carry our future children. Over the past couple of months, she has been healing wonderfully (despite catching an infection from the hospital) from the surgery and is ready to make our babies. We had considered looking at doing an IVF (in vitro fertilization) cycle to help improve our chances of getting pregnant.
But, now we have another issue--ME!
As excited as Christine and I were that she had the surgery to fix her fertility problem, it was quickly tempered when we found out that my sperm count is virtually nil. Yes, if you're gonna joke me, then here's where you can say I'm "shootin' blanks." Yippee skippy! That's me.
The doctor took two samples over a week's time just to make sure of the findings and the conclusion is that my sperm are for all intents and purposes dormant. The doctor said they just are not high-quality enough to be used to try to fertilize Christine's eggs. In other words, I'll never be able to father my own biological kids.
I cannot begin to describe to you how I feel right now hearing that. It's as if I just got sucker punched in my gut and then knocked on the head with a frying pan. It hurts in places I never thought I would feel pain. My mind is racing so fast with thoughts that I still can't put into words. It's the internal battle Jimmy is having with Jimmy that has been going nonstop ever since I found out. Your prayers and thoughts are coveted. :)
Okay, so now what are our options from here: adoption or donor sperm.
Regarding adoption, we spoke with a couple from our church last week who have two adopted kids to ask them about that process. They have international and domestic adoption experience, so they were the perfect people to talk about it. But after hearing about the intensive red tape and emotional rollercoaster they went through to MAYBE get a baby, we decided that was not the way we wanted to go. There's got to be a better way.
So that leaves donor sperm and here's where it gets REALLY interesting. The doctor said it is possible to use a stranger's donor sperm or you can get it from a family member. The idea of a stranger is kinda spooky to me right now. I know I could love that baby just like it was my own, but would I feel detached from the child in any way knowing it is not in my blood line? Getting my head wrapped around this issue is my biggest challenge right now.
As for family, my brother Kevin is my only full-blooded brother, but he's had some major health issues with his heart and would not be a good candidate. My half-brother Nathan is a baby-making machine and has three kids of his own, but he only has my father in him. While he's a possibility, I'm just not sure about using him or not (if he would agree to it, that is).
Then, I read this news story about a couple in the UK who went to the father of the husband to donate his sperm so they can have a baby and it made me think. Hmmm, now that's an interesting idea. Although I haven't asked my dad about it yet, it's an option I don't have a problem with having on the table. And why not?
This is where we are at currently. After Christine and I return from vacation this weekend, we'll be going to see a local reproductive endocrinoligist one last time just to make sure my sperm are indeed invalid. Barring a miracle from that visit, then what? What to do? It's something we are happy to have all the help we can get about. So don't hold back from sharing.
Here's your chance to help some truly needy kids and teachers
Earlier today, I was being interviewed by a New York University science journalism graduate student who is writing an article about the impact of people who are trying to shape the debate within the realm of health and nutrition and she asked me all sorts of questions about the work I am doing online. I especially remember her asking me a rather loaded question that goes much deeper than the two-minute response I gave her.
Here's what she asked:
"Why did you decide to start a blog?"
The context of that question was, of course, referring to the subject of promoting the low-carb lifestyle in our culture, but in retrospect I believe the answer runs much deeper than that to something that means a lot more than getting people to go on a low-carb diet. It's about wanting to make a genuine and lasting difference in the lives of other people.
With literally thousands upon thousands of visitors coming here to my "Livin' La Vida Low-Carb" blog each and every day (THANK YOU!), I have been privileged to be the inspiration, motivation, and catalyst for seeing some truly remarkable changes in so many of you that I could go on for days, weeks, and months talking about all of you who have shared your incredible stories with me about how this blog has positively impacted your life.
What a blessing it is time and time again as you pour out your innermost feelings to me in e-mails and comments. It never gets old and my dear wife Christine keeps every single one of them in a scrapbook for me to look at so we can show our grandkids someday what a difference one person can make when they dedicate themselves to something greater than themselves.
And that's what I want to talk to you about today. Livin' la vida low-carb is my catchy little phrase for talking about this amazingly healthy and permanent lifestyle change that has rocked my world for the past four years. Yes, it's about weight loss and health first and foremost, but there's another component to it as well. To me, it's also about giving back to the community with our time and resources.
People are always asking me why I devote so many long hours (most of the time, it's about 14-16 hours a day) to the various projects I engage in and the answer is simple: I've been given an incredible miracle in my life thanks to the Atkins diet, so the least I can do is give my very best effort to help as many people as possible find their pathway to a healthier, better life, too. And that's what drives me.
To that end, I want to share with you an unbelievable opportunity for YOU to make a real difference in the life of some underprivileged children and the courageous teachers who have been entrusted to work with them as they are growing up. To me, teachers are the REAL heroes in the United States, right alongside policemen, firemen, and the men and women who comprise the armed forces of this great country we live in.
DonorsChoose.org is making a difference in the lives of kids across America
There's an organization called DonorsChoose.org that encourages teachers who have some legitimate financial needs to share those on their web site to give individuals like you and me the opportunity to fill those needs. It's an amazing concept that I'm so happy to not just share with you today, but to also give you the opportunity to become a part of.
I've created my own challenge to the readers of this blog called "The Livin' La Vida Low-Carb Help The Teachers Challenge" and I've set a respectable goal that I think we can reach if everyone does what they can--$10,000. Just $1 from every person who visits here in a month would net a quick $200,000, so this goal should be a cinch if we all make even a nominal contribution.
You'll notice on my challenge page at DonorsChoose.org that there is a list of proposals I have provided in this challenge that fit within the mission of what I do--educating, encouraging, and inspiring others to live healthier than they ever though possible. Please browse through those for yourself to get an idea of what your dollars will be invested in.
This is a very worthy cause that will make you feel good about your decision to take back control of your weight and health while passing on and instilling those same values into the future generations so they won't struggle with the same problems we did growing up and into adulthood. Education is the key as we move forward with spreading the message of healthy living to our most precious commodity--our kids!
Wanna be a part of my "Help The Teachers" challenge? Here's how:
1. Go to the challenge web site. 2. Take a look at the various proposals I have chosen for this challenge. 3. Think and pray about what you can donate towards the challenge. 4. Click on the "Fund Now!" link to your favorite proposal. 5. Feel good that you made a lasting difference in the life of a child.
Are you ready to pay it forward for all the amazing improvements you have seen in your own weight and health as a result of your low-carb lifestyle? Then why not join me in the "The Livin' La Vida Low-Carb Help The Teachers Challenge" and share just a small token of your appreciation with some students and teachers who could really use a hand of compassion now more than ever. THANK YOU for participating in this challenge!
We all know how well livin' la vida low-carb works for adults to produce weight loss, improvements in health, and changes in your life that are simply indescribable. I can personally attest to all three of these and enjoy proclaiming them boldly and proudly here at my blog as much as possible on a daily basis.
But what about children and teenagers? Is a low-carb diet appropriate for them, too? Well, according to this Newswise story, there's a new study that answers that question with a resounding and undeniable YES!
Lead researcher Dr. Robert Siegel, medical director at the Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, wanted to see the impact of a low-carbohydrate diet weight loss approach on obese teenagers when a pediatrician is involved in dietary recommendations and support. The study lasted six months and carbohydrate restriction was the primary means for attaining the objective.
The study participants were from 25 pediatric offices with 47 pediatricians in the Cincinnati, Ohio area and were between the ages of 12 and 18 with a body mass index (BMI) in the 95th percentile range for their age, or clinically morbidly obese. Nearly two-thirds (63 percent) of the children were placed on a ketogenic low-carb diet with 50g or less carbohydrate daily.
The pediatrician and a dietitian counseled the study participants regularly to make sure they understood their new diet and to provide any helpful tips and advice about what they can eat and thrive on low-carb. Nearly 60 percent of the study participants stuck with the plan for the entire six-month period.
So, how well did livin' la vida low-carb perform for these teens?
Very few of the study participants failed to lose weight with an impressive 84 percent of them experiencing an average 11-pound weight loss. There was a wide range of results from a 12-pound weight GAIN (how much you wanna bet this kid didn't eat less than 50g carbs?) to an eye-popping 53-pound weight LOSS (an average of 18 pounds a month! WOW!).
Just as impressive was the fact that the teenagers saw a "significant decrease" in their BMI and a huge boost in their self-esteem. This is one of the most overlooked aspects of livin' la vida low-carb. Because you see such quick weight loss on low-carb rather than the discouragingly slow drip-drip-drip of a half-pound or so a week on low-fat diets, you DO feel more confident and better about yourself.
When you are a teenager, this is VERY important when self-image is magnified a MILLION times more than when you become an adult. Perhaps these obese teens who are losing weight have never had the courage to go out on a date, speak up in class, participate in social activities, and other such formative events in their life. I remember how it felt to be an outcast of sorts because of my weight as a child and young adult. Livin' la vida low-carb changed that FOREVER! WOO HOO!
Dr. Siegel was impressed with the results of the low-carb diet and warned that the obesity epidemic will only get worse the longer we ignore low-carb as a possible remedy.
“Most obese children go on to become obese adults and will face related morbidity and mortality risks," he said. "Pediatricians are often frustrated in finding an intervention that is feasible and successful in the office setting. A low-carb diet may be one answer.”
What was that? A LOW-CARB DIET MAY BE ONE ANSWER!
Can we put that in the headline of every newspaper in America, flash it across the screen on all the cable news channels, quote it on the radio at the top of the hour news...oh, sorry, I got so caught up in how amazing that quote from Dr. Siegel that reality escaped me momentarily. You and I both know that'll NEVER happen with the anti-low-carb bias that exists in the media! Otherwise, it would have ALREADY happened, right?
Wanna know what else happened to the teens in the study typical of a low-carb diet? They spontaneously cut back on their calories. Yep, even without counting them, the average daily caloric intake was CUT IN HALF--an incredible 1200 calories--from 2,401 down to 1,153. This study shows it's true!
Also typical of the low-carb lifestyle that was borne out in this study is that the amount of fat consumed actually remains unchanged, although the percentage of fat in the diet increases. As much as the low-fatties like to claim the Atkins low-carb diet is so "high-fat," the fact is the amount of fat eaten is the very same as what people have been eating. So much for that lame excuse. How's that for some cold hard truth?!
It all comes down to making better food choices rather than obsessing over foods and even teenagers can learn an invaluable lesson that will serve them well for the rest of their long and healthy lives. No more inevitable weight loss surgery for these kids.
In a related story, this London Telegraph story takes advantage of the popularity of television shows like NBC's "The Biggest Loser" and CBS's "Survivor" to create a reality show for obese British teenagers unlike anything you've ever seen before!
The six one-hour shows over a three-week period, set to feature five boys and five girls 16-19 years old, will be called "Fat Teens Can't Hunt" and will feature the original Aborigines children teaching 10 overweight British teens about how to eat like the native people did. Yep, you heard me right, these kids will have to become hunter-gatherers just like our early ancestors.
It won't be airing until late 2007/early 2008, but what an incredible concept! Much in the same way Michael Pollan described in his book The Omnivore's Dilemma, the kids will be required to find and kill their own food or go hungry. EEEK!
What's gonna be in their diet? Nuts, berries, fish...hmmm...
Do you notice what the macronutrient composition of that diet is? If you answered high-fat, high-protein, and low-carb, then you would be absolutely correct! Yeah!!! When can we get this show to come to the United States, hmmm?
I'm sure low-carb researcher Dr. Jay Wortman, who I met this past weekend in Nashville, Tennessee at the Nutrition & Metabolism seminar, would be more than happy to introduce some obese American teenagers to the First Nations aborigines people in Canada.
Although they have already been criticized for being cruel to the children on the show by making them actually find the food they want to eat, the show's producers say it's a novel concept that will make the teenagers appreciate where their food comes from.
"These kids will have to catch, trap, pluck, skin and eviscerate the animals they come across," the producer said. "We'll film them tasting the fruits of their labours."
If the teens get stuck and can't find any food to eat for two days or more, then the television show's producers will provide "emergency rations" to help them survive. Of course, medical professionals will be on hand to keep track the health of the contestants. The producers anticipate the move to livin' la vida low-carb as a permanent healthy lifestyle change takes about three weeks, so they are hopeful the contestants will continue their new habits beyond the show.
I love the attitude of the producers about their show.
"This experiment gives our teenagers a unique opportunity to address their dysfunctional relationship with food, once and for all, before they reach adulthood," they said.
Hallelujah! Somebody pinch me because this has got to be a dream. Livin' la vida low-carb is gonna be on full display featured prominently in a major television series in the UK. When the kids successfully start losing weight and on the road to a healthy life. It's a beautiful visual of what Dr. Siegel found to be true in his study.
Let the endless screaming by the pompous low-fat gurus begin!
I was alerted to something quite disturbing today to say the least by my calorie-restriction friend April who told me about a California-based youth "fat farm" called Academy of the Sierras where overweight and obese children are being subject to an extreme low-fat diet consisting of nearly single-digit fat intake daily! April blogged about this here initially, then here, and finally here.
What is most incredible is the diet they have these kids eating is robbing them of some of the essential nutrients their bodies need for them to continue to grow into the healthy adults they are becoming. While they are getting 70g protein and 20g fiber, they are ONLY being fed a measly 10g fat. JUST TEN GRAMS! That's all they get daily. Yikes! They get to eat all the soups, salads, fat-free (and HIGH sugar, by the way) yogurt, fruits and vegetables as part of this wonder diet plan. The leaders of this program claim the kids won't get hungry eating this way.
Well, I guess they don't get as hungry with all of that protein they are eating. But what about the healthy fats these kids NEED for a healthy body and improved overall health? Even the American Heart Association FINALLY admitted this year that proper fat intake is important. Studies have shown eating fat improves mental health. Are these people at the Academy of the Sierras even concerned about the damage they are causing to the developing brains of these children they have been given control over? Helllllloooo?
You would think with the results of a landmark 8-year study on low-fat diets earlier this year showing them to be the big fat lie that people who are livin' la vida low-carb knew them to be would end this madness about being afraid of eating fat as part of a healthy weight loss program. This all-too-obvious fact has apparently left the good folks at the Academy of the Sierras as they continue to live in the past with their dietary recommendations centered around the archaic teachings of Dr. Dean Ornish!
But isn't it borderline child abuse what the leaders of this program are doing to these poor kids? With new research PROVING the theories they are using to induce weight loss in these children -- namely an extreme low-fat diet -- is false, then why would they still insist on using these tactics when there are much better ways to bring about the same results in a healthier manner? They wouldn't need to change their program radically to make it just as effective for weight loss AND be more nutrient-dense.
They could still have the kids eat 70g protein and 20g fiber, but have them instead begin to limit the carbohydrates to 20g daily while allowing 30-40g fat MINIMUM daily and having them avoid sugar, white flour, starchy veggies and processed foods. Why wouldn't this work better for the kids and give them a more palatable menu to eat from?
Wanna see just a sampling of what these kids have to eat now:
low-fat pizza very lean ground turkey tacos (EWWWW!) fat free bean burritos veggie egg white omelettes (where are the yolks?!) oil-free Asian stir fries innovative pastas (what the heck is that?!) spice apple raisin pancakes bagels with fat-free cream cheese Berries (the best item on this menu!) melon wedges fat-free yogurt Boca burgers (mmm, mmm Boca--NOT!) sandwich bar with very lean ham and turkey Mexican pizza fat-free soups fruit salad (can you say sugar?!) honey chicken veggie stir-fry “spinach baked” potatoes (say who what is THAT?!) frozen yogurt salad bar with fat-free dressings carrot sticks fat-free potato chips with salsa (yucky poo!) oatmeal raisin bars
Can you tell me what most of those foods contains gobs and gobs of? That's right, CARBOHYDRATES!!! Jeepers creepers people, let's just send the blood sugar of these kids into overdrive now with what we're feeding them. Sheeeeez! I remember eating an obsessively low-fat diet before and it's not fun at all. If my experience is any indication of what is going to happen to these kids when they get back home, then it would not surprise me to hear that most if not all of them rebel at their new way of eating and gain back every single pound they worked so hard to lose. I don't wish that on them, but it is almost inevitable with a low-fat diet as extreme as this one is.
You can express your concerns about this dangerous and abusive weight loss program for these adolescents by e-mailing them directly. You can address your e-mail to Phil Obbard who is the Executive Director for the Academy of the Sierras. Ask him to specifically answer your concerns about the lack of good fats in the diets these kids are being put on and let me know if you hear back from him or another representative. This blatant abuse by the Academy of the Sierra MUST be stopped immediately!
